Altman: “This whole experience is like a dream”
The Maccabi "Shachar" Under-21 team arrived at midnight last evening in Porto, Portugal and today began preparations for their Matchday Three Champions League Youth League encounter with their counterpart from Porto.The Maccabi “Shachar” Under-21 team arrived at midnight last evening in Porto, Portugal and today began preparations for their Matchday Three Champions League Youth League encounter with their counterpart from Porto.
Ziv Arie’s charges will have their final training session at the Porto practice facility where they will also play their game tomorrow at 15:00 Israel Time, 13:00 Portugal time.
Even before landing the coach began preparations by giving the players tactical instructions. When the club landed Tomer Altman talked about where the players are and how this competition will impact his teammates careers as well as the first team right before they face Porto:
“You don’t have to mince words when you discuss a team like Porto as its one of the best clubs in Europe and we are coming into this match the best that we can to play attractive football. This whole experience is like a dream.”
Altman also spoke about Maccabi “Shachar” this season:
“I along with my teammates feel like we are similar to the first team. From a professional standpoint we have two matches a week that also includes flying. This is something from the movies. I’m sure that the Champions League Youth League will help all of the players in the future. There are players that will never have the opportunity to play at this level and even if they do this competition will help them.”
The Maccabi “Shachar” Under-21 team arrived at midnight last evening ...
Maccabi Tel Aviv wins crazy 2-1 match
Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated Maccabi Petach Tikva 2:1 as 'keeper Daniel Lifshitz who was making his Yellow-and-Blue debut saw red in the 87th minute and winger Tal Ben Chaim finished the match in goalWhat an amazing game we had on Matchday Seven at the Moshava Stadium after the International break. A lead, tie, a lead again, a red card for Lifshitz in his debut and winger Tal Ben Chaim in goal. Not to mention Oz Rali also made his first Maccabi start as well. But it was the late drama that secured the 2:1 win and three points on goals by Carlos Garcia and Eran Zahavi.
Head Coach Slavisa Jokanovic started the match off with ‘keeper Daniel Lifshitz 
making his first start for Maccabi in place of an ill Predrag Rajkovic and with a trio of central defenders Tal Ben Haim, Eitan Tibi and Carlos Garcia playing in front of him. Avi Rikan and Oz Rali who was also making his debut were the defensive backs with a midfield of Gal Alberman, Dor Peretz, Gili Vermouth just behind captain Eran Zahavi and striker Barak Itzhaki.
Action in the first half began quickly as Carlos Garcia and Joachim Mununga saw yellow in the 2nd minute while Mohamed Kalebet would have the opening chance of the match in the 4th minute with Lifshitz knocking the ball away for a corner kick.
However, it was Maccabi Tel Aviv who would strike first as Zahavi lofted a gorgeous free kick that Itzhaki caught with his foot to the right of the goal and Garcia finished it off by putting the ball into the back of the Petach Tikva goal to go ahead 1:0 in the 20th minute. After Zahavi and Kalebat traded chances it was Petach Tikva’s turn to 
get onto the scoreboard. Guy Melamed’s free kick from 35 meters out fooled the Maccabi defense and trickled behind Lifshitz to even up the score as the teams headed into the lockerrooms deadlocked at 1:1.
The second half began with Jokanovic taking out central defender Ben Haim for Nikola Mitrovic and moving the team back to its standard four defenders in the back. A little bit later winger Tal Ben Chaim came on for Itzhaki and Dor Micha was introduced in place of Oz Rali. Just minutes after Maccabi’s final substitution the Yellow-and-Blue were rewarded with a penalty kick in the 79th minute as Xavier Thomas pulled down Ben Chaim in the box.
A deep pass by Avi Rikan found Ben Chaim in the box who was subsequently taken down by Thomas as Zahavi converted from the spot to give Maccabi a 2:1 lead. But the fun was only beginning when Maccabi would lose a man in the 87th minute and unfortunately that would be ‘keeper Daniel Lifshitz.
The Swedish born Lifshitz was shown a red card when he took down Oz Peretz outside of the box forcing winger Ben Chaim to pull on the ‘keeper’s shirt due to Maccabi having used all of their substitutions. The winger turned ‘keeper was up to the task as he made a kick save off of a free kick to preserve the lead and help pick up the valuable three points right before the club heads to Porto for a Champions League clash on Tuesday night.
What an amazing game we had on Matchday Seven ...
Youth department action Saturday – October 10
Another week of youth department matches are upon us this Saturday. Check out all of the details:
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv
The Under-19 team is off this week and won’t take part in Saturday’s matches. Next week the club will return to action when they will play at Sektzia Nes Tziona.
Beitar “Oren” Jerusalem – Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv, Bayit Vegan 09:00
Ori Uzan and Leon Asraf’s team will face their Beitar Jerusalem counterparts in an intriguing clash. The Under-17’s are in the midst of a great start to their campaign, winning four consecutive matches. Even with a game in hand, Maccabi “Oded” are still at the top of the table and will attempt to stay there this Saturday.
Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv – Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv, Schunat HaTikva 08:30
After a Derby loss last week, Eliezer Ben Aharon and Gadi Brumer’s side will try to get back on the winning track when they will play yet another Derby, this time against Bnei Yehuda who have yet to pick up a point this season.
Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 Central District club will not be in action this week due to a league break.
Maccabi “Team 2” Tel Aviv
The Under-15 Sharon District club will not be in action this week due to a league break.
Another week of youth department matches are upon us this ...
Yellow-and-Blue Saturday – Match Results
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 2:1 Maccabi “Shlomi” Netanya
The Under-19 side showed a lot of character when they faced Netanya at home in the Ramle Stadium after just taking on Dynami Kyiv in the Champions League Youth League. Ziv Arie’s Yellow-and-Blue side took a 1:0 lead in the first half on a goal by Or Dasa but gave up the tying marker in the second half. However, Maccabi “Shachar” didn’t raise the white flag and plugged away to find the winner just two minutes from time on a goal by Maxim Grechkin to help his club pick up the three points. Next up for Maccabi is Sektzia Nes Tziona in two weeks time after a week off for the international break.
Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv 2:1 Maccabi “Kalfo” Petach Tikva
Maccabi “Oded” faced Petach Tikva in a top two battle as the Yellow-and-Blue came out the victor from this crucial matchup. Ori Uzan and Leon Asraf’s players got off to a good start scoring the first goal of the game as Neal Goldberg gave their side a 1:0 lead. However, Petach Tikva evened the score prior to halftime as the team’s ended the first half tied at 1:1. The score stayed deadlocked until the 83rd minute when Eden Kartsav gave Maccabi the lead and first place with a game in hand. Next week the Under-17 side will play away at Beitar Jerusalem in Bayit Vegan.
Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv 1:3 Hapoel “Yashin” Tel Aviv
After two successful Matchdays for the Under-16 team, Eliezer Ben Aharon and Gadi Brumer’s club fell to Hapoel in a derby match at Wolfson 3:1. The Reds took a quick 1:0 lead in the 9th minute, but Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” drew even at the beginning of the second half. However, two goals by the hosts sent Maccabi to their first loss of the season. Next up is another away derby as the Yellow-and-Blue will face Bnei Yehuda on Matchday Four.
Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv 2:0 Sektzia Nes Tziona
The Maccabi “Eldad” team started their season off on a positive note winning 2:0 on goals by Koren Gadge and Aviv Nidam. Next week they play Hapoel Rishon Le’Zion at home.
Maccabi Tel Aviv “Team 2” 0:4 Maccabi “Max” Haifa
The Sharon District Team 2 Under-15 side didn’t fare as well as their Central District counterparts losing to the Greens 4:0. Next Matchday they’ll have a chance to get onto the right track as they face Haifa’s other team Hapoel Next Saturday.
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv 2:1 Maccabi “Shlomi” Netanya
The ...
Maccabi Shachar Tel Aviv defeats Maccabi Netanya 2-1
The Yellow-and-Blue returned to domestic league action defeating Maccabi Netanya at home 2:1. Dasa and Grechkin are the goal scorersMaccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv picked up their second victory in the Israel Youth League defeating Maccabi Netanya 2:1 on goals by Or Dasa and Maxim Grechkin at home in the Ramle Stadium after drawing against Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League Youth League. The victory also puts Maccabi back on the right track after falling to Bnei Sakhnin last week away.
Ziv Arie’s players would come out of the gate quickly and take control of the match 
right from the first minutes as they would take an early 1:0 lead in the 12th minute. Amit Shapira combined with Or Dasa for the latter to score off his own rebounded shot to give Maccabi the advantage which they would hold for the balance of the half.
Maccabi “Shachar” would make two substitutes to begin the second half as Almog Eylon and Tomer Altman came into the game with Omer Hermati joining them on the pitch just ten minutes later. In the 70th minute Netanya tied up the match on a goal by Aviv Avraham but the Yellow-and-Blue lifted their heads up and found a way to pick up the win. Maxim Grechkin the acting captain took things into his own hands or should we say his feet when in the 88th minute his shot from the side of the goal went off of the post and behind the visiting ‘keeper giving Maccabi the lead and the victory.
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv picked up their second victory in ...
The 4th Annual Avraham Bendori Goalkeeping Tournament
Maccabi Tel Aviv is currently going through a very successful period in their history and this is thanks to the people who helped found and build Maccabi Tel Aviv. As part of maintaining the great traditions of the club, the Avraham Bendoni Tournament took place for the 4th time. The tournament is named after goalkeeper Avraham Bendoni who played for the Yellow-and-Blue prior to the founding of the State of Israel and is thought to be one of the great players to have ever suited up for the club. Bendoni also stood between the goal posts for Israel’s first ever official national team match. This year’s tournament featured ‘keepers from not only Maccabi Tel Aviv but other clubs as well including Hapoel Petach Tikva, Beitar Jerusalem and Bnei Yehuda. Haim Levin a former goalkeeping star also visited with the players during the mini-matches that were taking place.
Chen Abdu, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Educational Consultant and Head Goalkeeping Coach of the Youth Department was in charge of the tournament ad explained about the importance of having this competition from both a professional and educational standpoint: “This tournament has now taken place for four years and for the first time during Chol Hamoed Sukkot. The objective of the tourney is to honor the fine work of Bendori and that’s why it’s named after him. The goal is to do something fun and educational with all of the ‘keepers. Most tournaments are for
regular players but this one is special just for the goalkeepers.”
On the values that were taught to the participants:
“Some of the things that I tried to do along with Guy Nachshon and Eitan Hamiel was to convey the cherished past of the club. Not just about the current players but also about the players from its illustrious history. I explained to them that the role of the ‘keeper is not easy and also the relationship between the clubs. We are working here on education and it’s disappointing for me that some of the big clubs that we 
invited to participate in this tournament couldn’t see past the rivalries and understand that what we are doing here is for the benefit of the youth and teaching educational values. I hope that next year we will see more teams participating.”
About the players experience:
“The players enjoyed themselves and that’s important. They worked on all of the skills that a ‘keeper needs to, they got to know their fellow ‘keepers and there was amazing sportsmanship between the players. Another interesting fact is that Tzachi Roffe was also part of this and he’s someone I had trained in the past.”
The Maccabi Tel Aviv ‘keepers won the tournament after going toe-to-toe with their Hapoel Petach Tikva counterparts as the medals were handed out by Youth Department Director Nir Levin. The goalkeeping coach of Bnei Yehuda Yakov Assayag, Avi Dadon from Beitar Jerusalem and Hapoel Petach Tikva’s Medan Katzar all took part in the tournament.
Maccabi Tel Aviv is currently going through a very successful ...
Youth Department Action Saturday
While Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Under-19’s and Under-17’s teams have started their 2015/16 campaigns, the two Under-15 sides will begin their respective seasons this week.
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv – Maccabi “Shlomi” Netanya (Ramle Stadium, 12:00)
After their fantastic match against Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League Youth League, the Yellow-and-Blue youngsters are on a mission to start a new winning streak in the domestic league. Ziv Arie’s club has a win and a loss so far this season and clearly wants to keep up their fine play after drawing against Kyiv. The visitors from Netanya are coming into the match with one point in two games as they lost to Beer Sheva and drew against Beitar Jerusalem.
Maccabi “Oded” Tel Aviv – Maccabi “Kalfo” Petach Tikva (Kiryat Shalom Training Facility, 08:30)
The Under-17 side returns to action after the postponement of their match against Julis as Ori Uzan and his charges will take on a Petach Tikva side that are just one place behind them on the table. Maccabi “Oded” will try to continue their string of victories against the Petach Tikva young pioneers.
Maccabi “Eli Fuchs” Tel Aviv – Hapoel “Yashin” Tel Aviv (Wolfson Training Facility, 12:30)
An Under-16 Derby for coach Eliezer Ben Aharon is on tap this week after defeating Beitar Jerusalem last Matchday 9:1 Both teams currently have the same amount of points, however the Yellow-and-Blue have a better goal differential.
Maccabi “Eldad” Tel Aviv – Sektzia Nes Tziona (Nes Tziona Training Facility, 08:30)
On Matchday One the Central District Under-15 team will play at Nes Tziona. Erez Belfer and Ran Elias’s side will look to begin the year on the right foot on the road.
Maccabi Tel Aviv “Team 2” – Maccabi “Max” Haifa (Ketzef Training Facility, Lower Pitch, 10:00)
The Sharon District Team 2 Under-15 side will also be in action away at perhaps the toughest team in the league, Maccabi Haifa as they’ll look to open up the year on a positive note.
While Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Under-19’s and Under-17’s teams ...
“I’m happy as to how we looked, we came to play”
The Maccabi "Shachar" Tel Aviv Under-19 team and its coach took a historical point in a 1:1 draw with Dynamo Kyiv. The goal scorer, Kanichowsky: "We wanted to win and we gave our maximum"Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv added a new page to the youth team’s history book after drawing 1:1 against Dynamo Kyiv and collected its first point in the Champions League Youth League.
The coach, Ziv Arie summed up the match saying:
“I wanted to take a point against Chelsea, but it was just not realistic. But here we did take a point. All of the other teams in this competition are better than us, maybe not on a personal level or in training, but their speed and their physical play. In every match we play we want to take a least a point. We want to look good and be able to stand toe-to-
toe at the highest levels and make sure we perform on the pitch. It’s tough as there are really some great teams here, the top of the top. Usually I’m not thrilled with a draw, but I’m happy as to how we looked.”
On the players performance:
“We changed our system up a bit and we also wanted to do so on Saturday against Sakhnin but it just didn’t work. Gabriel Kanichowsky is a player born in 1997 and he has to do a bit more. He’s one of the older guys on the team and he’s taken that responsibility upon himself.”
On participating in the competition:
“It’s a rare opportunity, and each game here is equal to eight regular league matches. Especially in its intensity, I’m enjoying it. At the Chelsea match I told the players that instead of being with their families (on Rosh HaShana) they travelled to play a game, yesterday instead of sleeping in the Sukkah they trained and prepared for the match. There’s a lot of games and it’s a dream.”
The first ever goal scorer for Maccabi “Shachar” in the Champions League Youth
League was Gabriel Kanichowsky, and he said following the match:
“It’s an experience and a lot of fun for the team, we wanted to win and we gave our maximum and as we continue on we want to pick up more points in the other matches. Of course I’m happy I scored but it makes absolutely no difference if it was me or one of my teammates. The main thing is that the ball went into the goal. The heat affected both teams, and our opponent came from a country with a colder climate. There’s no question that this competition is the best thing that could have happened to us and also for football in Israel in general. What will be against Porto? It’ll be difficult, but I hope we will also collect points in Portugal.”
Maccabi “Shachar” Tel Aviv added a new page to ...
Maccabi Under-19’s draw with Kyiv 1-1
The Maccabi Under-19 youth team played valiantly against their Kyiv counterparts under a sunny sky and hot temperatures at the Ramat HaSharon stadium as Ziv Arie’s side collected their first point on Matchday Two.
Both clubs began the match tentatively trading opportunities, but it would be Dynamo Kyiv who would strike the first blow as Bogdan Mykhaylichenko would come in from the right side to score for the guests and take a 1:0 lead in the 21st minute. Maccabi would then add an opportunity of their own as Tomer Altman’s chance would be saved by the Ukrainian ‘keeper Vadym Soldatenko.
However, just one minute later the Yellow-and-Blue would be rewarded as Gavriel Kanichowsky would score to even the match up on a terrific pass from Eylon Almog to give the close to 1000 fans a chance to cheer the future stars on. Mykhaylichenko almost gave Kyiv the lead except his shot hit off the cross bar and Kanichowsky would have an opportunity for Maccabi to go ahead to no avail as the sides headed into halftime all knotted up at 1:1.
The second half saw Maccabi “Shachar” dominate the play but chances by Almog, Or Dasa, Amit Shapira and Bar Galili couldn’t break the deadlock as the match ended in a 1:1 draw.
Maccabi Tel Aviv Starting Lineup: Haviv Ohayon, Maxim Grechkin, Idan Yogev (Amit Rosenboim 45′), Bar Galili, Ran Vaturi, Dan Glazer, Shai Golan, Tomer Altman (Amit Shapira 67′), Gavriel Kanichowsky, Or Dasa, Eylon Almog (Dor Galili 74′)
The Maccabi Under-19 youth team played valiantly against their Kyiv ...
Arie- “It’s important that there’s a good football atmosphere”
Just before a day of Champions League football for Maccabi Tel Aviv, the coach of Maccabi "Shachar" Tel Aviv, Ziv Arie spoke about his team's match against Dynamo Kyiv.A day of Champions League football begins tomorrow as Maccabi Tel Aviv faces Dynamo Kyiv on Matchday Two of the Champions League Group Stages. Prior to the main event at Sammy Ofer Stadium, the Maccabi youth side will play its Dynamo Kyiv counterpart at Grundman Stadium in Ramat HaSharon at 13:00.
After the loss against Chelsea in England, the Yellow-and-Blue will attempt to pick up their first points tomorrow. Head Coach Ziv Arie spoke to the official website about how the players are feeling about playing in the illustrious competition, the match against Dynamo Kyiv and the importance of the supporters at the match:
“I believe that there is a lot of excitement amongst the players, but we are trying to keep a low profile. Every match in a European competition is an amazing experience for us and we are trying to be as professional as possible and separate ourselves from all of the excitement that comes with it.”
On the desire to pick up points tomorrow:
“As crazy as it may sound so we believed that we could defeat Chelsea. It’s important for us to look good, play attractive football and compete as these levels against these types of teams and to take some points. Dynamo Kyiv’s youth side might not be at the level of Chelsea’s but they are still at a higher level than what we would normally face.”
On the importance of the supporters tomorrow:
“We purposely picked a small stadium so that the fans can be a part of the action. It’s important that there’s a good football atmosphere with a lot of supporters in general and especially ours.”
A day of Champions League football begins tomorrow as ...
